These murals on the walls of a West Bank hotel in the Middle East have brought more interest onto the conflict in the region and follow a range of Banksy murals that have been painted onto the entrance to the West Bank and at checkpoints within the Holy Land.

The latest Banksy murals leave a view of the banal nature of the conflict with a hooded Palestinian youth having a pillow fight with an Israeli soldier. The murals by Banksy has been drawn in the Walled-Off Hotel in the city of Bethlehem and the room had a view of the walls that separate communities and people in the area.

* Christians comprise some 7,000 of Old City’s 38,000 people

* Months of Muslim-Jewish violence leaves Christians on edge

* Clergy worries about further decline in Christian numbers

When hundreds of Jewish nationalists marched through the Muslim Quarter of Jerusalem’s Old City this month, waving banners and chanting songs in what has become an annual ritual, it wasn’t only Muslims watching warily. Christians were, too.

Religious tension is nothing new in a city that has been the home of three faiths for centuries. But the outlook for the Christian minority, squeezed inside the ancient walls of the Old City and caught in the midst of a months-long wave of violence involving Muslims targeting Jews, has seldom looked tougher.

While the Muslim population rises steadily, now making up 75 percent of the 38,000 residents in the city’s alleys, and the Jews increasingly make their presence felt via the annual march and their settlements beyond the Jewish Quarter, the number of Christians has not risen in 50 years, hovering around 7,000.

“If a thousand Muslims leave Jerusalem, that’s one thing,” said Jamal Khader, head of the Latin Patriarchate Seminary near Bethlehem. “But if a thousand Christians leave, you threaten the identity of Jerusalem as a city of multiple faiths.”

That concern is clear to Basil Saed, 28, the owner of a gym in the Christian Quarter. After an attempted stabbing by a Muslim in the Old City several weeks ago, Saed came face-to-face with an Israeli military policeman hunting for the suspect.

“He was trembling he was so terrified,” said Saed, a prize-winning weightlifter who wears a large gold cross around his neck. “In an instant he could have shot and killed me.”

To Saed, both Israel’s tight security and the Muslim unrest make him uneasy, and raise questions for his community.

“If we weren’t strong, we’d all be gone by now,” he said.

SQUEEZED OUT

In the narrow, cobbled streets of their quarter, Christian families have been running arts and souvenir shops for generations, earning money from the steady flow of religious and other tourists who flock to sites like the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, the site where Jesus is believed to have been buried.

With the surge in violence that Jerusalem and surrounding areas have experienced since last October, tourism has become more erratic. Anecdotally, locals and tour guides say visitor numbers have dropped off sharply, hurting trade.

Residents like Youseph Shbeita, 35, the third generation owner of a religious icon shop near the Holy Sepulchre, are determined to hang on, seeing no option. But they can understand why younger Christians would want to leave.

“When you’re in the minority, you have to go with the flow,” he said, expressing a sense of responsibility for trying to preserve a Christian presence in the city where Jesus preached. “We just hope for calm, always for calm.”

Daniel Seidemann, an Israeli lawyer and activist who closely follows the community, said he feared it was being squeezed out by the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, with its tendency to focus on the Jewish and Muslim narratives.

“Since much of the epicentre of this round of violence has been in and around the Old City, it has increased their vulnerability,” he said, pointing to the lack of political and social institutions for Christians to depend on.

“I think it’s safe to say there are more Christian Palestinians in Chicago today than there are in Jerusalem.”

Most of the Christians in Jerusalem are Palestinians. Historically, the community has played a prominent role in the opposition to Israel’s occupation of East Jerusalem and the West Bank, putting it at odds with Israel.

Inside the walls of the Old City, however, there is still a degree of mutual dependence – Muslim merchants run stores on land owned by the Christian church, and Israeli Jews stop to buy fruit or a felafel from Muslim and Christian stallkeepers.

Even so, Saed, the weightlifter, doesn’t feel confident.

Netherlands

The festivities begin with the arrival of Sinterklaas (Saint Nicholas) on a boat from Spain. History alludes to a Catholic priest in fourth-century Myra – in modern Turkey. Under protestant rule, celebrations of Sinterklaas moved from the public into the private sphere.

Jan Schenkman’s 1850 novel ‘Saint Nicholas and his Servant‘ popularised many modern Sinterklaas traditions. Schenkman’s writings reflected the culture – Sinterklaas interrogated children about their behaviour and religious knowledge. Rewards came in the shape of gifts and food. Naughty children were sometimes carried away by the servant in a large sack.

One of the most controversial legacies involves Zwarte Piet or ‘Black Pete’ – a character who accompanies Sinterklass. White people put on blackface makeup, with exaggerated lips, curly wigs and costumes. The United Nations has called on the Netherlands to ditch Black Pete due to its racist and negative stereotyping. In recent years, the anti-racist response to Black Pete has received more mainstream attention.

Jerusalem

Christians account for less than 2 per cent of the population in Jerusalem. For many in the city, Christmas is just another day in the city. Christmas Day falls on the Sabbath so individuals will be off regardless.

In some parts of Jerusalem, you will find Christmas trees on display. At the New Gate to the Christian Quarter of the Old City they lit up a Christmas tree opposite Notre Dame of Jerusalem Center.

The far-right Lehava demonstrated at the front of Jerusalem’s YMCA building to protest an event inside in which they claimed Jewish children were decorating Christmas trees.

On December 21, Santa Claus helped residents select Christmas trees distributed by city hall.

When it comes to Christmas Day, individuals, of all faiths can enjoy services in multiple languages. From Jerusalem, pilgrims make the short walk to Bethlehem in the Occupied West Bank.

Bethlehem

The violence that grips Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories harmed Bethlehem’s tourism trade. Hotel bookings have not hit the 40 or 50 per cent mark. In 2014, hotels had sold out. Decorations will not extend to entire downtown district. Authorities will only decorate Manger Square and two nearby streets.

Bethlehem Mayor Vera Baboun has also accused Israel of taking more land to complete the separation wall at Bethlehem’s perimeter. Patriarch Emeritus Michael Sabbah, who was the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem between 1987 and 2008, wrote a critical article about the situation in Bethlehem for Haaretz.

Some Palestinians decorated an olive tree with tear gas canisters and grenades near the Church of Nativity.

Israeli authorities issued 600 travel visas for Christians in the Gaza strip. Yet there are age restrictions so younger families miss out. There is an estimated 3,000 (or more) Christians in this area and around 300 or so Catholics, compared to about 1.4 million Muslims that live in the Gaza strip.

For those able to attend – there’s a carnival atmosphere at central Manger Square. Vendors sell sweets, watches, and balloons. Scout troops play bagpipes and drums.

Iceland

In Iceland, a historic tradition involves the giving of books. This tradition has its own name ‘Jólabókaflóð’ or the ‘Christmas Book Flood’.

Individuals exchange gifts on Christmas Eve and spend the evening reading books.

According to Hildur Knútsdóttir, the tradition dates back to World War II. War affected Iceland’s ability to import goods outside of paper. So the book became a viable gift.

For gifts, relatives receive hardcover editions as individuals tend to buy paperbacks for themselves. So bookstores ensure they are well stocked with hardcover books before December.

Iceland also prints more books per capita than any other nation.

Mexico

In the southwestern city of Oaxaca, individuals partake in a number of traditions. One tradition concerns the procession that re-enacts Mary and Joseph’s search for shelter. They are received at a pre-arranged where the godparents (padrionos) of that posada welcome the pilgrims with songs and blessings.

The Noche de Rábanos (Night of the Radishes) begins on December 23. Farmers arrive and make elaborate sculptures of kings and nativity scenes from the vegetables. Winners of this competition are greeted with fireworks.

On Christmas Eve, residents will gather statues of Jesus Christ from godmothers, who then donate them to local parishes. Beyond celebrations, they return to celebrate the Misa de Gallo (Mass of the Rooster) – the first celebration meal before Christmas.

The tradition of plate smashing continues until December 31.

The post How is Christmas celebrated in other parts of the world? appeared first on Religious Reader.

During a short trip to the West Bank this November, an interfaith group, most of them British Muslims from the Faith Matters organization, visited Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Ramallah and Hebron through a Holy Land Trust program for five days.

Faith Matters is a UK interfaith and community cohesion-based organization that works “towards conflict resolution and cohesion through work with faith communities in the UK and the Middle East.” The aim of the trip was to bring British Muslims to the Palestinian territories so that they gain awareness of issues within the region and to build networks and links with faith-based and interfaith organizations in the arena. Therefore, the trip included meetings with key faith leaders, organizations and faith institutions.

The group had the chance to have an overview of interreligious relations in the region and diverse Jewish perspectives on Judaism and the State. They also met with Archbishop Atallah Hanna who talked about the relationship between Muslims and Christians. The group also had the time to wander around the old city of Jerusalem and visit the Dome of the Rock and the Aqsa Mosque. They also learned about the relationships between Arabs and Jews through Musalaha, an organization that works towards reconciliation.

The group had a series of private-facing discussions in Jerusalem and Bethlehem including a meeting with HLT Executive Director Sami Awad (who shared his personal experience in nonviolence), a meeting with a member of parliament and representatives from the Christian Peacemaker Teams (CPT). Short pilgrimages were also included and allowed the group to pray at the Ibrahimi Mosque. A visit to HLT home rebuilding project at Al-Khader village and to the St. George Monastery was a highlight. A great ending of their tour was enjoying dinner and a cultural evening along with HLT staff in Bethlehem before heading back home.

With the aim of promoting the messages of understanding, mutual support and empathy between Muslims and Christians both in Jerusalem and the Palestinian territories and within the UK, the group left the Holy Land supporting Muslim and Christian dialogue and ensuring that the dialogue continues through the participants when back in the UK.

Source: The Holy Land Trust Link: https://www.holylandtrust.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=687&Itemid=90